Kenyan Pastor Who Told Followers To Starve For Jesus Convicted Of 191 Murders

Kenyan Pastor Who Told Followers to Starve for Jesus Convicted of 191 Murders A Kenyan court has convicted pastor Paul Mackenzie and 28 other defendants of murder over the deaths of 191 people, including 190 children, in a religious group whose members were allegedly instructed to starve themselves and their children to death to meet Jesus. The verdict was delivered on Monday, October 19, by a court in the coastal city of Mombasa, bringing a major development in one of Kenya’s most shocking cult-related tragedies. Mackenzie, the leader of Good News International Church, was accused of using extreme religious teachings to persuade followers that death through starvation would enable them to reach heaven before the end of the world. The court found that the pastor and his associates operated a system in which religious doctrine and a hierarchy of leaders were used to enforce what the judge described as deadly fasting. All 29 defendants had pleaded not guilty, maintaining that nobody had been forced to starve to death. Delivering the judgment, Justice Diana Kavedza Mochache said Mackenzie’s followers regarded him as a mouthpiece of Jesus and were subjected to a system designed to enforce his teachings. The court heard that children were targeted first, with some isolated and denied food while their parents watched. Guards were reportedly deployed to prevent followers from escaping or obtaining food, while those who resisted the fasting instructions faced violence. The judge also highlighted the group’s rejection of conventional education and healthcare. Mackenzie reportedly taught his followers that medical treatment was associated with Satan. According to court evidence, burials in the forest community were described as weddings, while those who died were portrayed as having joined Jesus. The findings formed part of a lengthy judgment addressing the circumstances surrounding the deaths and the role played by the accused. The case came to international attention in April 2023, when Kenyan authorities began uncovering bodies in shallow graves in Shakahola Forest, near the coastal town of Malindi in Kilifi County. Police investigations followed reports of missing people and led to the discovery of a secluded settlement where Mackenzie’s followers had been living in mud houses away from the scrutiny of neighbouring communities. More than 400 bodies have since been recovered from the area. Post-mortem examinations indicated that many victims died from starvation, while others suffered suffocation, strangulation or injuries to the head. The 191 murder convictions relate to 190 children and one adult. Investigations and separate legal proceedings have addressed additional deaths linked to the wider tragedy. The scale of the discoveries raised serious questions about how the group was able to operate for an extended period despite earlier concerns about Mackenzie’s activities. Mackenzie established Good News International Church in 2003 and gradually built a following through his religious teachings. His preaching included opposition to formal education and modern medical treatment, which he portrayed as incompatible with his religious beliefs. He later moved his operations from Malindi to the remote forest settlement, where followers established a secluded community. Authorities had previously investigated his activities, but the group continued operating before the discovery of the mass graves exposed the extent of the deaths. Mackenzie denied forcing his followers to fast, arguing that they made their own decisions based on their religious convictions. The court rejected the defence in reaching its verdict. Mackenzie and his co-defendants face sentencing following their convictions. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 6, 2026. The case has renewed calls for stronger oversight of religious organisations and more effective intervention when vulnerable people are subjected to dangerous practices in the name of faith. For families who lost children and other relatives, the convictions represent a significant step towards accountability after years of investigations and court proceedings. The Shakahola tragedy remains one of the deadliest cases of religiously motivated mass deaths in recent history.